Gnome-panel applet "Indicator Applet Complete" is missing icons

Question

I have a Gnome session definition with XMonad as windows manager where I start the gnome-panel explicitly. The session definition looks like this:

[GNOME Session]
Name=GNOME + XMonad
RequiredComponents=xmonad;gnome-flashback-init;gnome-flashback;gnome-panel;nautilus-classic;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.A11ySettings;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Clipboard;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Color;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Datetime;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Housekeeping;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Keyboard;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.MediaKeys;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Mouse;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Power;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.PrintNotifications;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Rfkill;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.ScreensaverProxy;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Sharing;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Smartcard;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Sound;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Wacom;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.XSettings;

With this setup in one english language Ubuntu 18.10 installation the gnome-panel pops up like this:

I tried all applets available but none is supplying the set of items combined in one applet that I see on another german Ubuntu 18.10 installation starting the Gnome shell (gnome-panel), this is the appet layout that I really want:

The above applet contains all the relevant pieces in on applet.

I think both are called "Indicator Applet Complete" but does anybody know why one version is only showing 2 icons while the other shows all icons?

What you call `gnome-panel` isn't the GNOME panel of old. It's just GNOME shell with some extensions. — muru, Dec 01 '18 at 19:57
On MATE Panel it is named `indicator-applet-complete` if it helps... @muru `gnome-panel` is still available on 18.10, we can get GNOME FlashBack session based on it. — N0rbert, Dec 01 '18 at 19:57
@N0rbert : I have installed package ```indicator-applet-complete``` and added the "Indicator Applet Complete" but somehow the icons are still only 2 (up-down arrow and mail) The rest of the icons that I'm used to are mssing. Any idea? — Konrad Eisele, Dec 01 '18 at 20:02
@N0rbert and Konrad call it whatever, it's *not* the gnome-panel of GNOME 2. It's just GNOME shell dressed up differently. You're better off looking for additional extensions for GNOME shell. — muru, Dec 01 '18 at 20:05
@muru. Ok then you are right. I'll call it shell, any more input? — Konrad Eisele, Dec 01 '18 at 20:06
@muru You are wrong, GNOME Flashback does use `gnome-panel` and it has nothing to do with GNOME Shell and/or with its extensions. There is GNOME Classic session that is `gnome-shell` + extensions. — muktupavels, Dec 06 '18 at 20:48
@KonradEisele How are you starting your session? And what do you mean with "I start the gnome-panel explicitly"? — muktupavels, Dec 06 '18 at 20:51
@muktupavels : I use there session definitions: https://github.com/eiselekd/dotfiles/tree/master/gnome. Then I select it in the GDM login. The default panel is xmobar, however when I press win-shift-g I start the ```gnome-panel``` ontop of xmobar, see startgpanel https://github.com/eiselekd/dotfiles/blob/master/.xmonad/xmonad.hs function ```startgpanel``` — Konrad Eisele, Dec 06 '18 at 20:57
@KonradEisele `DesktopNames` in `gnome-xmonad.desktop` should be `DesktopNames=GNOME-Flashback;GNOME;` not `DesktopNames=Unity`. You might try to change `Exec` line like here - https://git.launchpad.net/~ubuntu-gnome-flashback/gnome-flashback/tree/debian/patches/run-systemd-session.diff — muktupavels, Dec 06 '18 at 21:18
@muktupavels : Thanks for the tip. I dont have any problem with the config file. The problem was that the gnome-panel applet "Indicator Applet Complete" needed its child apps to be started explicitly. See the answer from N0rbert below and "systemctl --user start". Without these lines the gnome-panel icons where missing. — Konrad Eisele, Dec 06 '18 at 21:20
@KonradEisele That is because default GNOME Flashback sessions are started by systemd. See also this file - https://git.launchpad.net/~ubuntu-gnome-flashback/gnome-flashback/tree/debian/gnome-session-flashback.target#n9. So you can try to change `gnome-xmonad.desktop` to use `run-systemd-session`... — muktupavels, Dec 06 '18 at 21:25
@muktupavels : Now I understand what you mean. Thanks, that is also a possibility. — Konrad Eisele, Dec 07 '18 at 06:46

N0rbert · Accepted Answer · 2018-12-01T21:57:37.617

First of all GNOME Panel is still GNOME Panel, not GNOME Shell.
I have no gnome-shell executables in process list while selected GNOME FlashBack session from GDM. The GNOME Flashback (Metacity) has all indicators in place automatically.

As far I can see on clean minimal 18.10 install - the xmonad package provides session file:

$ dpkg -S ".session" | grep "session$"
gdm3: /usr/share/gnome-session/sessions/gnome-login.session
ubuntu-session: /usr/share/gnome-session/sessions/ubuntu.session
xmonad: /usr/share/gnome-session/sessions/gnome-flashback-xmonad.session # <---

and the /usr/share/gnome-session/sessions/gnome-flashback-xmonad.session contains the following (differ from your only by nautilus-classic):

$ cat /usr/share/gnome-session/sessions/gnome-flashback-xmonad.session
[GNOME Session]
Name=GNOME Flashback (Xmonad)
RequiredComponents=gnome-flashback-init;gnome-flashback;gnome-panel;xmonad;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.A11ySettings;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Clipboard;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Color;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Datetime;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Housekeeping;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Keyboard;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.MediaKeys;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Mouse;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Power;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.PrintNotifications;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Rfkill;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.ScreensaverProxy;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Sharing;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Smartcard;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Sound;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.Wacom;org.gnome.SettingsDaemon.XSettings;

In GDM3 this session is labeled as GNOME Flashback (Xmonad).

So I installed the components mentioned above with:

sudo apt-get install gnome-panel

Even after installation of full unity-desktop package I can't get all indicators in place automatically.

But I can get them manually:

systemctl --user start indicator-power.service
systemctl --user start indicator-keyboard.service
systemctl --user start indicator-sound.service
systemctl --user start indicator-datetime.service
systemctl --user start indicator-session.service

# and optionally
systemctl --user start indicator-application.service
systemctl --user start indicator-bluetooth.service
systemctl --user start indicator-messages.service
systemctl --user start indicator-printers.service

So I have:

With the systemctl commands I have the icons I'm used to back! I was trying to get this work the whole afternoon. This rabbithole I can now jump over. Thanks. — Konrad Eisele, Dec 01 '18 at 22:45
I had the same issue on Ubuntu 22.04.1 LTS with gnome-flashback and xmonad after updating yesterday. Loading the indicators manually with the provided commands temporarily fix this issue too. — Christian Benke, Sep 30 '22 at 07:51

Gnome-panel applet "Indicator Applet Complete" is missing icons

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